


The Wicked Things of Death and Life

by WordsCrusader



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Attempted Murder, Bisexual Original Character, Brutal Murder, Elena is gonna be a better character, Elijah Mikaelson is not so good but not so bad, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Smut, Everyone Needs to Go to Therapy, F/M, Fix-It, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, I'm trying to maintain the vibe he had during his firts appereances on TVD, Jealous Klaus Mikaelson, Jenna DOESNT DIE, Julie Plec has issues with parental figures, Klaus Mikaelson Being Klaus Mikaelson, Morally Ambiguous Character, Mutual Pining, Mystery, Not kidding, OFC is not a witch, People that hate each other has to team up in order to fix shit, Pining Klaus Mikaelson, Pride and Prejudice but with Vampires and Murder, Protective Elijah Mikaelson, Season 2 Rewrite, Season 3 rewrite, Slow Burn, Temporarily Unrequited Love, There is a lot of stuff going on besides the romance plot, These characters are idiots, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Sexual Tension, When I said that this was going to be a slow burn I FREAKING MEANT IT, Writing for Fun, and less annoying, be ready because you will suffer, bickering like an old married couple, but dont worry there will be fluff too, but its kinda complicated cus Im still figuring out things for the story, but not before having a healthy dosis of angst, gonna have to read to find out, it's gonna worth it, mentions of depression, not really love triangle, or a vampire, or a werewolf, self indulgent fanfic, that means who is she gonna end up with, they prefer to suffer than to admit their feelings, when a monster loves another monster, zero shame
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-23
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:13:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26000950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WordsCrusader/pseuds/WordsCrusader
Summary: It was no surprise that, as the doppelganger's sister, Lucrezia was soon caught up in a world of monsters she had believed to be only part of fictional stories.When things seemed that couldn't get worst her family is at risk when they hear news about a curse and Elena is the sacrifice needed to break it.With her sister being chased by Klaus, the mysterious original vampire, an extra problem for Lucrezia begins to emerge. What it used to be a power with no explanation, having visions of upcoming enemies, it becomes stronger but with painful consequences that no one foresaw.Her life gets intertwined in unexpected ways with both of the originals brothers. In the process she will find deep rooted secrets about herself that will change the meaning of everything she believed and knew.(This story starts from 2x11. I'm gonna stick with some of the major plot points from season 2 (after all this is a rewrite) but I'm still gonna do a lot of changes especially on season 3. Hope you enjoy it)
Relationships: (just a bit 'cus they are gonna be friends later), Alaric Saltzman/Jenna Sommers, Elena Gilbert/Damon Salvatore, Elena Gilbert/Stefan Salvatore, Elijah Mikaelson/Original Female Character(s), Klaus Mikaelson/Original Female Character(s), Rose/Damon Salvatore, delena is one sided, sorry delena shipers but this is for story purposes
Comments: 3
Kudos: 52





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Lucrezia Gilbert cast is Astrid Berges Frisbey, a spanish-french actress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Edit 1/12/2020: I've made a tumblr for this Ao3 account. If you want to talk, ask or see some updates you can follow me I'm @wordscrusader just like my user name and with the same icon)

Damon left and Elena was sulking downstairs about her “imprisonment”, as she had called it. Lucrezia wanted to stop thinking, and release some of the stress from previous days. When was the last time she enjoyed a party, went to the Grill, or read a book, without thinking that something was about to attack?

Feeling on a constant high alert, was draining her. Never she had thought she would miss her simple life. Lucrezia had always wanted adventures like the ones from her books and tv shows, but her idea was leaning more towards the side of finding three dragons instead of barely making it through the day. She took her headphones from her backpack and with blasting music drowning every sound from outside she began dancing at the rhythm of Amsterdam by Nothing but Thieves. In that moment she was like any other girl. No blood suckers, no rituals, just her dancing. After three songs she dropped herself at her bed and texted Caroline to see if she was alright with Tyler, tonight was the full moon; and even though she wasn't desperate to spend the night with a deadly werewolf, still felt the need of helping her a bit.

A stabbing pain on her head made her grab a fistful of her sheets, and an already familiar face came to view in her mind. _Can I have a normal day for 5 minutes please?_ Lucy thought. She eyed the red book sitting on her bed table, but dismissed the idea. Having a boring afternoon was her plan, and that's what she was gonna do. She went to the kitchen to grab something, and saw Bonnie and Jeremy.

"At least could you make out in your bedroom? It's kinda disturbing to have this picture of my little dumbass and my friend."

"Fuck off!" said Jeremy throwing a cushion.

"Lucy, hi, I thought you were out" Bonnie said trying to hide her blush.

"Nah, Damon left, so I decided to stay. Anyway, I just wanted to grab something to eat. I hope I've ruined the mood" she said from the kitchen. Not in the mood to cook she took a bowl with some fruits.

"Common, leave already!" screamed Jeremy.

"You know what Bonnie?" She said turning back to the living room just to piss him off more "I have this album that mom made from our holidays with grandma on the mountains, and it's so emba…"

"Now! Get out!" he said while pushing Lucrezia all the way to the stairs.

"Have fun! And don't forget I don't want a nephew for now" she laughed while going to her room again.

Her playful mood changed when she saw her book again, wanting to ignore it she put it on her desk drawer and decided to read ‘The Lost City of Z’ once again. Her eyes roamed the pages but her mind was elsewhere. Lucrezia caught herself, more than once, looking up from her book and watching the drawer. Those faces kept distracting her. It was like she was being haunted.

To get any resemblance of peace Lucrezia knew she had to put on paper her ideas. Giving up her book and her normal day, she started sketching. It was the same face she had been drawing for the past few days. Strong jaw, dark piercing eyes, and dark hair. A handsome face that meant no good if she had seen it. It was now a normal occurrence for her to see strangers' faces before ever meeting them. At first it was confusing, later on she figured out that her drawings were all from people that represented a threat to her and her loved ones. First it was Damon, then Katherine, then the vampires from the tomb, and the list could go on and on, for it seemed as if enemies would just pop out of the Earth. A practical thing, the downside was that she had filled an entire notebook in just a few weeks and had to buy more notebooks. The dark red leather book was the newest. Soon after that, Lucrezia had four new faces to add to the collection. The first two, the more simple ones and less frequent in her mind, were a man with light brown hair that was almost completely shaved off and a woman with blonde highlights and tanned skin. The other two, were special, she had been dreaming and having visions for a while, it terrified her. None had plagued her mind like that, why did her mind insist so much? What kind of terror are they capable of? Who were they gonna kill? Her? Elena? Everybody?

It didn't help that from no matter the angle she drew them they stood up from the page like if they were truly alive. The dark haired one, looked calm and mysterious, instead the other one had madness written all over his face. He had sandy blond hair, with blue green eyes that demanded attention. He seemed to be angry all the time.

Everyone had tried to find an explanation for her apparent "gift". Bonnie had done some weird witch stuff in order to find if Lucrezia was one, but the answer was always a negative. Caroline had said that maybe having shared a womb with a doppelganger had some secondary effects. Damon had even suggested that crazy Isobel might have done something to her. Despite all their theories no one knew why she could have those visions. 

She hated not having an explanation. It filled her days with dread and anxiety, always waiting for the moment when shit would hit the fan. After all, this was a small town in the middle of fucking nowhere and it looked like every single asshole in desperate need of therapy was attracted to it; but at least she knew all the local faces, it wasn't hard to spot the people from her drawings. 

The hours soon passed. Lucrezia heard as Elena pounded on Jeremy's door, she had put down her headphones, and so, she paid attention. It was odd to knock on a door like that just to ask for help with just some boxes. Lucrezia stood and walked to her door and as she opened it she saw the same man from her dozens of drawings talking to her sister. Her body froze at the sight. 

"It's time you and I have a little chat" he said, and turned to see who had caught them. His posture went stiff and his eyes grew bigger for a fraction of second, but no one noticed.

“You” Lucrezia felt her stomach turn, and Elena saw the blood from her face disappear. She stood there not knowing what to do, he was here, inside her house. Because she seemed to recognize him, Elena understood that, like previous times, she must have seen him; but Elijah was perplexed at this although he remained quiet preferring to observe how everything unfolded. 

"I agree," Elena answered, trying to advert the suspicion Elijah clearly had about her twin. They were not identical, that idea had calmed Elena’s fears since she heard about the sacrifice, she wouldn't have to be part of it too. Her hair was long and dark as heirs but wavy, paler skin and with the same grey eyes Isobel had. 

He gestured for Elena to walk, apparently not minding the new addition but his eyes never left them as they went inside Elena's room. Lucrezia could feel his stare as she closed the door. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and slow down her heartbeat, she was scared and confused but she wasn't going to make a show out of it.

"Forgive the intrusion. I mean no harm to your family" he said, sitting near the window. Elena and her remained standing.

"Why did you kill those vampires when they tried to take me?"

"Because I didn't want you to be taken" Elena had briefly summarized what had happened at the apartment, but it made no sense for him to do that. "Klaus is the most feared and hated of the Originals but those that fear him are desperate for his approval. Word gets out that the doppelganger exists and there will be a line of vampires eager to take you to him."

"Which would ruin your plans, I presume" Lucrezia stated, pushing aside her fear and locked eyes with him. It was so strange to have him in front her and not in the safety of her sketchbook. He in return looked at her with a hint of a smile.

"What is your goal then?" Elena said getting closer.

"Klaus' obsessions have made him paranoid. He's a recluse. He trusts only those in his immediate circle" he answered her but his eyes never left Lucrezia.

"Like you"

"Not anymore" his gaze once again focused on her sister.

"You don't know where he is, do you?" she finally was grasping what he wanted.

"And you want to use her as bait, to come to us, or well you" Lucrezia added, verbalizing Elena's thoughts.

"Well to do that I need you to stay put and stop trying to get yourself killed"

"At least we agree on something" she said to herself but with no intention of hiding her snarky comment, she was still pissed with Elena’s actions.

"How do we know you are telling the truth?"

"Well if I wasn't being truthful all your family would be dead now, and I would be taking you to Klaus right now. I'm here and I'm prepared to offer you a deal."

"Please, not to be rude or anything but we both know that there could be a thousand reasons why you don't want to take her right now" she mentally laughed at the stupidity of this conversation. He was just pretending to give them a sense of power in a situation where he was the mind behind all of this. "Perhaps you don't want her to run and hide because if she stays put she is an easier target for Klaus, and you are working for him. Maybe, you want the power of her blood for yourself but need to wait for the right moment. Or who knows, perhaps you have created a plan that we simple mortals can't phantom."

"Lucrezia!" she got close to her "Please, perhaps we should listen to him, it's not like we have other choice."

"I prefer to risk it, than to trust him. He's not good news ‘Lena" she said with pleading eyes. If she had seen him then it meant he was dangerous for them, especially to her sister.

"What kind of a deal?" Elena asked, ignoring Lucrezia’s warning.

"Do nothing, live your life, stop fighting, and then when the time is right you and I shall draw Klaus."

"Then what?"

"I kill him."

"Just like that?" Elena asked.

"Just like that" he said "I am a man of my word. I make a deal, I keep a deal."

“That sounds too good to be true.” Lucy said this time.

“Are you doubting me?” he asked, raising his eyebrow.

“I thought that was obvious. That aside, what is your plan? When is gonna be ‘the right time’? How are you going to kill him?” Elena took her arm asking for her to remain quiet, but she brushed it aside. “From your words, you’ve spent, what? centuries by his side? If he is the asshole everyone claims he is then I guess he must have crossed you many times before and you still remained with him, so what makes you think that we’re gonna believe that you suddenly saw the light and want him dead after all these years?” Elijah remained silent, and Elena watched their stare challenge with worry. She knew she was right, but Lucrezia seemed to have a death wish for her to talk to him like that. Elijah was unpredictable, and his face might have not shown anger but no one knew what went on in his mind.

"Let's get things clear, Lucrezia," he said, fixing his suit and standing in front of her, "I might respect your concern for your family but there is no need for you to disturb yourself with my plan. Eventually, I will inform Elena about what she has to do, until then I recommend not to try anything you might regret. You and your friends are no match for Klaus' wrath. If your sister escapes he will do things, as you so eloquently said, you can't phantom to everyone you hold dear. I will keep my word. I am your best choice to defeat him."

"How can we be sure? Because either way we still have to face Klaus and suffer the consequences and we do not know the worth of your promises." she said crossing her arms, not backing up at Elijah’s threat.

"I see, then I shall also keep your family and friends safe, if that is what you two need to agree with me."

"How do you plan to do that?" Elena said, trying to take the conversation to a more calm direction. He kept looking at Lucrezia for a few more seconds and then turned to Elena.

"You have a friend, Bonnie, it seems she possesses the gift of magic. I have friends with similar gifts. Together we can protect them." he took a step towards Elena. "So, do we have a deal?" Elena seemed reluctant, but her face lit up with an idea.

"I need you to do something else for me."

"More demands?"

\--------------

Elijah left soon after they discussed Stefan's freedom. They hoped he would remain truthful to his word.

"I saw Elijah's face, I've been drawing him for some time."

"Yeah, from your reaction it wasn't hard to figure that out. Why did you not say something before?" she said dropping in her bed, and her shoulders relaxed now that he was gone.

"Honestly, I don't know, this has been a hell of a week. I guess it scared me so much that I spent a lot of time pretending it wasn't real” she took a spot right next to her “Still want to make a deal with him?"

"I don't trust him, but he's powerful and with witches on his side. It's the best idea I can think of right now. Besides he did save me last time."

"For now, I mean, how do you think you are gonna lure Klaus?" she asked, but Elena remained in silence glancing at the window "Oh my God. You want to go through the sacrifice."

"Katherine wanted to escape and she paid the price, her family was massacred Lucy" her lips quivering "I… I could never live with myself knowing that you died because of me."

"You still have the right to want to live." she said taking her hands "That's not selfish 'Lena"

"It is if I risk everyone's safety."

"Look at me," she said, releasing her hands and grabbing her face. "Are you the one willing to take the life of a teenager and her friends for a curse? The one that ruined so many lives before?"

"No." Elena said with teary eyes

"Exactly, you're not. It's this crazy Klaus guy. So stop blaming yourself for something that you don't control. You're doing the same you did with mom and dad. What is happening right now is NOT your fault" she said "So, I don't care if you don't want to fight for yourself right now, I will. I promise you that I will find a way."

"Lucy please, just let this go." Elena stood up and turned to face Lucrezia.

"You let go! Do you really think I'm gonna let my sister throw her life just because you are too worried and depressed?"

"I'm not depressed!" she said perplexed at her.

"Elena, please honey, 'already been there, done that'. So don't bullshit me, I know pain when I see it."

Elena sat again resting her head on Lucrezia’s shoulders. Seconds passed before she spoke again.

"If I lose someone else, I don't know if I can take it.” tears running down her face. ”I'm so tired Lucy. I don't wanna fight, I just want to be happy and for things to be like they used to be."

"I missed them too, so much it hurts, but then I remember Jeremy, Jenna, Ric, Care and Bonnie, even John despite being a dick. There are so many people that love us, need us and all of them would like to see you live."

"All of you are too willing to die for me and I feel so terrible."

"That's like the whole purpose of a family. Don't pretend you wouldn't do the same. I mean you can be reeeaaally stubborn when you set your mind." Lucy chuckled, pushing Elena a little bit to make her smile.

"A family trait, I've been told." she pushed her back and cleaning her face with her sleeves "Ugh, when did our lives turn out to be such a disaster?"

"No idea, and that's kinda sad. It seems like it was years ago when I used to think PE was the worst thing that could happen to me."

"I still remember that time when you fell at that volleyball game"

"Gee 'Lena, what a way to ruin this emotional bonding moment." she deadpanned and walked to the door. "Well, as pretty as this was, I gotta go to finish my homework, I haven't written a single word yet."

"Seriously?!” Elena collapsed on her pillows “I completely forgot about that stupid essay. Do you think if I say 'Hey Mrs. Wellington there was this millennia old vampire trying to kill us because of an ancient curse, while my boyfriend is still trapped in a tomb with his ex who's also my doppelganger, could you make an exception?' would I be locked up in a Looney House?"

"Man, our lives are indeed really shitty." she said and both laughed.

Elena saw Lucrezia leave, and her face changed. She had made no comments about the way Elijah looked at her, he had paid attention to every single one of her moves and words. For a moment she felt like he only had eyes for her, just like when Elena first met him and he had been so surprised. Was Elijah hiding important information about Lucrezia? Could she be a doppelganger too? Was she somehow also part of the ritual? Katherine hadn’t mentioned having a twin and the Petrova famiy book didn't either, but is not like she could be trusted. Whatever was, she had to find out soon if she wanted to keep her safe.


	2. Chapter 2

Lucrezia woke up and turned off the alarm the moment it rang. She hadn’t slept much last night, the unexpected visit Elijah made had left her shaken up. He now could come and leave as he pleased, and every time she tried to close her eyes she was scared he would just show up, kill everyone while they slept and take Elena. A thought that made no sense, he wouldn't have done a deal with her sister after all. Nonetheless, it kinda cringed her how many dangerous beings had permission to a place where she should feel safe.  
Elena had left early to meet with Stefan, so at least something good had happened yesterday and it made her happy. She dressed with dark blue jeans, black ankle boots and a burgundy linen sweater her mom made for her, and with a bit of makeup to look less tired she was ready. She was confident in the task she had at hand, nights were not only to be scared but to have great ideas too.  
She went down to the kitchen and saw that someone, probably Ric because Jenna was only good at boiling water, had made pancakes.  
Ric had his arms around Jenna's waist and where kissing with quite some passion. It was way to early to be witnessing her aunt doing such thing, so she decided to be a pain in the ass.

“Glad to see you so chummy” Ric took three steps away from Jenna “Aawww my history teacher just blushed, so cute” she teased them.

“One day your are gonna fall in love and let's just say that I have a lot of stories that I’m willing to share” Jenna threatens her while filling a cup of coffee.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but love has forsaken this precious body of mine. My destiny is to become the crazy cat lady of Mystic Falls.” she said with a mouth full of pancakes.

“Tell me, crazy cat lady. Why so early?” Ric asked.

"There are a few things at the club we have to sort out before the barbecue, otherwise Caroline is gonna kill us if they are not ready” Lucrezia was the president of the IT club at her school. Besides managing the school council website, they also did a lot of activities with programming, video games and robotics.

“So you are going to stay at the barbecue then?” Jenna asked.

“Yep, I promised to help her. Besides you know me, I’m a simple girl, if there is food…”

“Good luck then, call if you need anything. Maybe I can pick you up.”

“Sure but probably Caroline is gonna give me a ride. See you later, bye Jenna, bye Ric.”

  
\-----

  
The club was located at the far back of the school and it didn't have all the things they needed although that wasn’t a problem because for these meetings they would always bring their own equipment. The advantage was that no one used to come to this side of the building, and that a school club was a great cover. They did have to participate in official activities, but for them it was worth it.

“Excellent, everybody is here” Lucy said when she arrived at their club room.

“You’re late Luk” Noah had his arms crossed and seemed half dead. He was tall, lean and with dark chestnut hair.

“What's with that face? You look like a mess.” she answered.

“It’s 8 am on a fucking Saturday Luk. Cut the crap and tell us why you made us come this early” at this her eyes shined with mischief and smirked.

“Cheer up sweety, we just got another job and the pay is very good.”

“Finally! If I had to make one more change at the font of the website I was gonna throw the computer at Caroline’s head.” Charlie groaned, but her black eyes seemed to return to life. She had been assigned to some of the design aspects of the site for a special renovation Caroline had demanded, and she was ready to kill the blond girl.

“Yesss, papa has a new CPU to buy and a subscription to pay.” Jason, the only senior, cheered.

“I was getting bored already.” Sebastian said. Lucrezia was sure he only was part of the club because of the shaddy stuff, he was loaded with money.

“What’s the job?” Charlie asked.

“This client wants us to access a remote server, and copy all the information. The security is heavy, it seems that this person is good and a bit paranoid, and the sooner we deliver the better. They’re in a bit of a hurry. So let's get to work guys.”

  
\-----

  
A General would have been proud at the way Caroline was giving orders to everybody, even the freshman kids were a bit afraid. She was organizing the tables and checking the ingredients. An obvious frown on her face as she checked the list.

“Let me guess, trouble in paradise?” Lucy said appearing from behind and scaring her “Wow, sorry Care. I'm officially worried now. What's going on?” Lucy's face changed, she was a vampire. Something was wrong. Caroline was the kind of person that only got lost in thoughts when bad things happened. She tended to release stress by organizing or cleaning.

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” she answered without looking up.

“Care, you almost chopped a kid’s head for not having the right type of lettuce. Did something go wrong with Tyler last night?”  
She signed and put down the list.

“No, thank God no. Actually, everything went perfect. Too perfect, besides the fact that he almost bites me.” she had changed her attention to inspecting the tables, not looking at her friend.

“What? So, almost dying is perfect? That makes total sense.” Lucy grabbed her arm to stop her.

“Of course not! It’s… It’s just that… Ugh!” she said running a hand through her hair.

“Care, do you have feelings for Tyler?” since he discovered about her being a vampire, they had spent a lot of time together.

“No! I love Matt” she groaned and took a seat on a white plastic chair “I mean, maybe. I don’t know, okay?” Lucy waited for her to keep going “I really like Matt, he’s fun and sweet but things with Tyler are easy you know? I don’t have to lie about who I’m and that feels good, he accepts me. I’m also feeling so guilty with all the other lies I’m keeping from them. My head is gonna explode at any moment.”

“Maybe you like Tyler because you find in him the solace you need from Matt but can’t get. Would telling Matt the truth be so terrible? Maybe he will understand, the guy has heart eyes when he’s with you.”

“I thought about that. The thing is if I tell him the truth about me I will have to tell him about Vicky, and the small little fact that she’s dead. If he finds out Lucy, I will lose him. I just know it.” sadly that wasn't a far fetched idea. It could devaste him knowing about her sister, but even Bonnie had ended up accepting Caroline. Besides she had no part in that.

“You didn't kill her Care, Damon was.”

“I'm a vampire, he could be terrified of me. Remember how he reacted the last time?”

“The last time you weren’t in control of yourself, but look at you now. You are an amazing person Caroline, and you have under check your thirst even better than Damon and Stefan. You’re doing great. Seriously, if he doesn’t accept you he’s a dumbass.”

“You really think so?”

“Absolutely.”

“Thank you Lucy. I needed to hear that."

“Is my duty as your friend to remind you how awesome you are.” she said chuckling. Lucy saw Tyler in the corner of her eyes, he seemed to be waiting to talk with the blonde "Speaking of the devil, look who just got here."

  
\-----

  
In an apartment, not so far. A dark skinned man was chanting, his hands were over a photograph. Candles surrounded him and the flames were unnaturally high. A younger boy watched him from the leather sofa. Old books were piled on top of more books.  
The older man made a confused expression and groaned. The flames seemed to flick and get weaker, he focused more on this chanting and the flames went up again. Elijah, who was observing him, made a step forward with his hands inside his pockets. It continued for a couple of minutes until he stopped.

“I don’t get it, I saw nothing.” he watched the picture perplexed.

“What do you mean?” Elijah said, stepping closer to the circle the other one was in.

“That there was absolutely nothing. No sounds, images, or words. Just dead silence.”

“That can’t be, are you sure?” the younger boy said with his brows furrowed.

“Yes Lucca” he answered with stern eyes and turning to Elijah he added “I could try another spell but it would take more time.”

“Please, Dr. Martin, I don't mind waiting.” as long as he could get his answers Elijah was willing to try anything.

“Who is she? Maybe if I have more information it could work.”

“She’s the Doppelganger's twin, Lucrezia Gilbert.” Dr. Martin's eyes went big at the Original comment.

“I... I didn’t know doppelgangers could have twins.”

“It’s rare" the hands in his pockets twitched at his memories "that’s why I want you to keep investigating.”

“Of course Elijah. I will.”

He disappeared in a flash, leaving them alone. Dr. Martin stood up and searched among the many grimoires he had collected over the years. He soon found the one he was looking for, and taking the picture he gave it to Lucca.

“Keep an eye on her in school. Your mission is to get closer to Bonnie, but she seems important too. I want to know everything you can find. Understood?” the tone of his voice gave no room to discussion.

“Yes dad.”

  
\-----

  
Elena decided to stay at the Boarding House instead of going with Stefan to meet with Ric. Rose was still in the house, so she had to take advantage of that.  
She stood outside Damon's room, not knowing if she should knock or leave the vampire alone. Her lips pressed together in a slight grimace. She had lied to her and risked her life, when she tried to contact Klaus. Rose was surely still angry with her.  
Elena swallowed her worries and was about to knock when the door opened before she could even touch the wood.

"You do know I can hear you right?" Rose asked with a sharp tone.

"Um yeah, I know.” Elena said, rubbing her arm “It's just I didn't know if I could talk to you. I don’t want to bother."

Rose signed, shaking softly her head. To her, the Doppelganger was like an open book sometimes, not like Katerina. When she’s not lying of course, she thought. She crossed her arms and stepped aside to let her in.

"Let me guess, you want more information about Klaus."

"That's true, but that's not everything. I also wanted to apologize for what I did to you." Rose raised her brows, not expecting that, and looked at her in surprise "It was bad of me to lie to you just to get what I wanted. I know I also risked your life by doing so. I'm truly sorry Rose."

She stood there, watching her feets, not knowing if Rose had accepted her apology. She was about to leave when Rose spoke.

"What's it you want to know?" she said, taking a seat on the bed and crossing her legs. Elena raised her head, and her eyes beamed with a bit of hope.

"You told us most of what you know, but I noticed that you never said if you personally knew Klaus. Have you ever seen him?"  
Rose pursed her lips and seemed to contemplate her words.

"Barely. Trevor worked for Elijah, and after he had brought the doppelganger to them he had proved his worth. He was getting invited to a lot of their private parties. One night, I remember, he invited me to go with him. Trevor was trying to get me to know them better and perhaps gain their favor like he did." Elena took notice that Rose's hands were shaking a bit at the mention of her friend. "That night was the only time I saw him. He was dancing with Katherine, to say he was intimidating would be the understatement of the century.” her eyes were lost in memories, and for a moment she was no longer present. After a few minutes of silence she looked at Elena again. “I can't draw you any pictures but what I do can tell you was that he has dirty blond hair, fair skin, blue green eyes and that that time he was very charming despite the fact he was terrifying."

"If you ever saw him again could you identify him?" Elena was thinking about Lucrezia, if she had seen Elijah then perhaps she had seen Klaus without even knowing it was him. It was hard to identify the people from her drawings if one had never seen them, but Rose did.

"It's been a long time, I don't remember him much but a presence like his is difficult to ignore. I suppose if I saw him again, then yes I could."

  
\-----

  
It was dark now, but the school yard had beautiful lights hanging from the trees. There were a lot of people, and it looked like the whole town was there. The Band had gathered for the Barbecue and the Cheerleaders were about to make a presentation. They had sold tons of dishes, gathering most of the money they needed. Everything was perfect, but still, Lucrezia could’t find much joy in all of that like she used to do. Sitting on a bench she watched her classmates, and envied them for being unaware of the true darkness that lied among them. She still had fun and laughed during these moments, but a part of her had died a bit. The innocence of her childhood was no longer in her. While they were thinking about their dreams for college, or teenage love, she was thinking about not getting killed while protecting her family. Of course people still had problems despite not knowing about the supernatural, life was tough, but the mundanity of all that was something she missed.  
Oddly, at the same time, she had asked herself if she really wanted a mundane life. The adrenaline and excitement of her daily life made her want to keep living. This world was full of secrets ready to be discovered, mysteries to be solved, and it had so many intriguing aspects. That was a terrible thought, she knew, but nothing else had seemed to spark life in her since her parents’ death.  
Lucrezia took her phone and saw a couple of texts from their family and friends. It was past dinner time, and since everyone was out doing their thing, she decided to get something to eat at The Grill. Almost empty because of the Barbecue, she took her favorite table near a window with a view to the square. She had asked for a burger with extra cheese and spicy fries. While she waited she grabbed her sketchbook and for once drew something different. There was an old couple sitting on a bench at the square, and the light from the street lamps was just perfect. They were laughing a lot and looked so comfortable within their company. She smiled at that.

"You have quite a talent Lucrezia" she jumped in her seat, at the sudden voice. "My apologies, it wasn't my intention to scare you." Elijah said with a smile, one that she thought couldn't be nothing but fake. With his dark grey suit and composed posture he had a certain regal air around him.

“Um, thanks” she replied with an uncertain tone. She had not expected to receive a compliment from him.

“What are you doing here?" putting her sketchbook back inside her backpack.

"Well I thought I would enjoy some of the local food while I stayed here, but the choices are more scarce than I expected." she raised an eyebrow at his comment and his mouth twitched upwards a bit.

“Just food, Lucrezia.”

"Well, if that’s the case then perhaps you should leave. We don't want your delicate appetite to suffer, right?" he smirked at her blunt comment. His eyes remained on her and without an invitation he took the other seat a cross from her "Am I amusing you Mr. Smith?" she said his fake last name with a certain sarcasm, and he looked at her as if he were studying her face. Contemplating if he should tell the truth or not.

"Well, to be honest, I do find you to be quite interesting Lucrezia." her name rolled off his tongue like silk. She squinted her eyes at that, all snakes were charming, and he was no different. _Why would he try to make conversation with me? Does he want something?_ she thought.

"I hope it is not the kind of interest that could get me killed in a creepy sacrifice." Lucrezia decided to follow his game, to see if she could learn anything even though she doubted that.

"Never, you are under my protection after all, as part of the deal."

"What a wonderful relief to hear that. My worries had been vanquished then."  
He was about to retort her comment when the waitress arrived with her food. Elijah waited until the girl had left to continue their conversation. Changing his mind, in a desire to not provoke more hostility from her, he asked about something that had plagued his mind since.

"I noticed the other night, when we first met..."

"You mean the night you forced yourself into my home and said you could easily kill my family if you wanted?" she interrupted before eating some of the spicy fries. He looked at her, cocking his head and clenching his jaw.

"Not my best behavior I'm afraid, but yes. I noticed that when you saw me you seemed familiar with me."  
 _So this is what he wanted? Does he know about her ability?_ she thought and her body stiffened and it was not ignored by Elijah.

"That's obvious, my sister was very detailed in her story about the man that tried to kidnap her. Such events tend to leave behind a strong impression," she said and if her heartbeat was giving up her lie or not she did not care. That was all he was gonna get from her "Is that all? Because I would like to eat alone if you don't mind Mr. Smith." He seemed to want to say something else, but he considered it appropriate to do otherwise. The conversation was already going nowhere.

"Have a good evening then" but as he stood to leave Lucrezia felt a piercing pain in her head and had to grab the table to hold herself. It was stronger than ever before and no images accompanied it. It felt like her brain was on fire, and groaned "Lucrezia, what's wrong?" for a second she believed to have perceived true worry in his voice. Another flash of intense pain crushed her head but as fast as the pain came, it left.

"Is just a headache, there is no need to worry. You can leave." she answered without looking and holding her head in her hands, massaging her temples.

“That didn’t seem like a simple headache. You sure you don’t want me to take you to a hospital?”

“No, I will just go home.”

“Come, I will take you then.” he gestured for her to follow him.

“Let’s just be honest, okay? I really don’t want to be a bitch, perhaps if the circumstances were different I could even enjoy your company, but if my previous sarcasm and obvious distaste haven’t been clear enough Elijah, I’m not interested in your help. You might not be a bad person, but I do know your intentions with Elena and that’s enough for me.”  
Elijah watched her with a face that revealed no emotion at all, if he was surprised because she knew or mad for the way she spoke he did not show it.

“I understand your conflict Lucrezia, but as a man of my word I have to take care of Elena’s loved ones. Which includes you, despite being uncomfortable with my presence.” Lucrezia gazed at him with narrow eyes, his words had been true until now. He had proven himself to them with Stefan, and was not trying to hide the truth she had just mentioned. Not wanting to keep fighting over this, she tentatively took the hand he had offered her and stood facing Elijah. His eyes were on their hands for the brief moment that they had touched.

“Alright” she said almost in a whisper.

  
\-----

  
The car ride had been silent and awkward, but she appreciated the fact that he didn’t try to make conversation. When she arrived at her house, uncle John was waiting for her on the porch. _What the fuck was he doing here?_ she was shocked to say the least. She turned to Elijah and looked at him.

“Thank you” it was all she could say. Lucy was at a loss for words, it was all way too odd. Elijah nodded and smiled faintly.

“A pleasure, have a good night Lucrezia.”  
She got out of the Bentley, and she could swear John was seething. He was gonna bombard her with questions and accusations. She walked past him and went inside, not in a mood to tolerate his stupidity for the moment.

“What the hell were you doing with him?!” he said as he slammed the door, clenching his teeth.

“He gave me a ride, Sherlock” and just like that she went to her room, locked her door, and went to sleep. Recalling the strange encounter she had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally the first private encounter between Elijah and Lucrezia, a bit intense. Not to sound like a repressed victorian maid but they touched hands :o  
> What do you think Elijah is after? And what the hell is Lucrezia doing at her "club"? and what do you believe was the idea she had at the begining (after she woke up)?
> 
> Hope you enjoy it, bye bye.
> 
> (Edit 4/11/2020: I'm writing the third chapter, already 1294 words and I wan to write maybe 4k. So, I hope to upload it in a week or two)  
> (Edit nº2 5/11/2020: I got really inspired and I've already written 3158 words and I'm close to finnishing it. I guess I'm probably gonna publish it earlier. Maybe this saturday or sunday.)  
> (Edit n°3 6/11/2020: I'm on fire! I've reached 4,264 words and I still have to write two scenes to finish it. It's probably gonna be a chapter of 5k words.)  
> (Edit n° 4 8/11/2020: 🤯 I have no idea what sort of writing spirit has possessed me but I'm already on 5,663 words!!! And I still haven't finished!!! I've never done such a long chapter before. I guess I gotta compensate for taking like 2 months to update this 😅)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY!!! It is done! 🤩🤩🤩 Like I said in my previous note, I have no idea what kind of writing spirit possessed me but I was unstopable. I wrote 7,605 words! I've never wrote such a long chapter for any story before. I hope you like it and that you find some comfort on it after two months with no updates.

Inside Noah's room, only the sounds of keys being pressed at an impressive speed could be heard. Lucrezia stood by his side waiting, her eyes reading the code lines that could not only help her but gave her an upper hand in this fight. Everyone had worked their parts and now Noah was doing the final touches to break the last defense of Slater's computer. She remembered what Elena had said about how they contacted those vampires, but his girlfriend seemed to have changed the password and improved it's security after Slater's death. 

She had asked Noah to be in charge of this final step, because he was the only one that knew about the supernatural. As the youngest child of Tobias Fell, he had eventually found the journals of his ancestor Thomas. Instead of being appalled by the gruesome stories within its pages, he was enticed. That’s how a furious desire for learning more, grew on him. 

Within minutes Noah had finished, before checking the documents he began copying everything. When it was ready he clicked on it, and their mouth fell open. 

"Wow, this, this is…" Noah said with a slow, disbelieving shake of her head. 

"Incredible" she completed in a hushed voice.

"Look at this,” he exclaimed gesturing at the screen “thousands of files. This guy is brilliant."

"Was" she corrected. Noah looked at her confused.

"How? and who?"

"With a stake and probably Elijah. Or at least, someone he compelled to do his dirty work."

"Really? Can vampires compel other vampires? That 's so cool.”

“Only the Original ones seem to be able to.”

“Anyway. It’s a shame. I would've liked to talk with him."

"After hacking his server?" 

"I wasn't gonna mention that of course." he rolled his eyes. “How did you meet this guy?”

“I didn’t, I just knew he was this sort of Supernatural Wikipedia. Damon did, because we needed information.”

“What were you looking for?”

“Trust me, this is one of those things you don’t want to know.” Noah groaned at that, he wanted to know, but it was better if he did not.

Despite the fact that Noah was fascinated by the supernatural lore, he wasn’t that keen on participating. He had once said ‘I kinda like being alive Luk, so I’m better off with videogames, don’t need that much action in my life anyway.’. An agreement had been made between them, she would tell him only those things that would give him more knowledge but not risk his life.

“So, it is done. What 's next? What are you gonna do?” 

"You know that vampires like to keep a low profile and their cybernetic footprint is almost non-existent?”

“Yeah, and?”

“Think about it! Now we can track them, contact them or do whatever we want. Maybe even expand what Slater had with new information. This is a powerful tool, I’m not gonna let it pass." Noah chuckled at her. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing is just that you’re such a Slytherin and you had dared to doubt the test result.”

“Hey! I told you that I was just convinced I was a Ravenclaw. Now, can we focus please?”

"Yeah, yeah." He said, and then he flashed a wicked smile as his brown eyes lit up. “That wolf girl you mentioned, the one that attacked Damon the other day.“ She remembered her from her drawings. “We could find more about werewolves through her, track her pack, and maybe even find other packs. You know, to keep tabs on them too." 

Mystic Falls seemed to be on a chaos rampage as every single creature was showing up. There was no guarantee that another pack wouldn't show up. It would be excellent to have a sort of advantage against them, and such files could make a real difference.

They would have to be extremely careful though, if word got out about how much information they possessed it would turn them into a target just like Slater. And they had enough problems at the moment. Besides, Lucy didn't want to risk Noah's life more than she already did.

"Did I mention before how much I love your brain?" 

"A few times, but I'm a slut for it so you can keep saying it." he said with a smug smile and turned in his chair to look at her in the eyes. “By the way, how are you gonna pay us for this? You never told the guys you were the client.”

“Don’t worry about that, I already got it covered.” she answered taking a seat on his bed “I implemented the same thing you did last year for that guy from New York, but changed the code to take it on a bigger scale.” It consisted of a program that sends emails from a supposed insurance company that hid a code that took information from their computers. Specifically from their home banking accounts.

“I’m prouder of you each day, I feel like a dad on a futbol match. A hacker and now a thief.”

“Well kinda, I felt a bit guilty for taking money so I expanded it so that it only took $30 from thousands of accounts instead of just a big chunk from just a few.”

“Since when do you have morals?” he said jokingly.

“I blame my sister's influence.” and both laughed. 

It was true that most of the things they did were basically criminal activities but they weren’t trying to actually hurt people, so they did the best they could to minimize their impact. That included denying certain jobs that crossed those boundaries.

“So, now that the deed is done, are you gonna tell me why you showed up at fucking dawn Luk? And don’t bother telling me that is because of this thing” Noah pointed towards his computer.

She groaned at his question but spoke anyway. “John is back in town.”

“Oh. That’s fucked up.”

“I know. I’m avoiding him, he suddenly remembered that he is a father. So, yay for me and my life.”

“You can stay here tonight if you want. Meredith is gonna be at the hospital all night, so you can sleep in her room. You know she doesn’t mind.”

“That’s not a bad idea, I will let you know. Now I gotta go back before Elena sends the sheriff to look after me.” she said looking at her phone and the gazillion messages she had sent her.

\-------

Lucrezia arrived at her house and closed the door as slow as she could. Without making sounds she checked everything and once she noticed that John was nowhere near sight she finally called for her twin.

"I'm home." Elena came down the stairs in a hurry when she heard her.

"I sent you tons of messages! Why didn't you answer?"

"Because I was ignoring you."

"Screw you Lucy! This is important, we need to talk." she motioned for her to come upstairs with her.

"Are you gonna break up with me?" Elena turned at this.

"Jokes aside, this is serious. John told Jenna about us being their daughters." Lucy's eyes went cold, her body tensed.

"I knew it! That dickhead just came here to fuck things up again. I’m gonna put his head on a stake!" She couldn't believe how much of an asshole he was. Lucy was sure he had said it more in order to hurt Jenna than because he had decided to finally take responsibility for them. "Now he wants to act like a father?! Seriously?! What the actual fuck is wrong with him?!" she screamed.

He lied to their faces for 17 years, when their parents died he didn't bother to be around and when he did show up he lied even more and put their friends in danger, and then he left _again._

The audacity John had was unbelievable. 

It's not like they were planning on lying to Jenna about it forever. But they had decided to do it when they felt ready to do so. Finding the truth had been really hard for both of them. It was just another lie their parents had kept hidden, along with the small little detail of their secret 'town official hunters' job. Besides, it also involved Ric and his not so dead ex-wife. How could someone start talking about this huge bomb? It was so convoluted, messy and shocking that she felt lost in what she should do.

“You are angry Lucy, I know...”

“Angry barely encompasses what I’m feeling Elena.” she interrupted.

“... but right now we have to calm down." she continued despite Lucy's remark and grabbed her hands drawing soothing circles on them. She felt the same way but Elena wasn't going to feed her sister's rage even more. "He said he knows things about the sacrifice. Stefan is probably already talking with Damon and planning on how to make him talk. If we throw him out we won't find out."

"Not unless we drain the vervain from his system, and let Damon or Rose compel him."

“I won’t let Damon hurt him Lucy!”

“I will” Elena looked at her with stern eyes and crossed her arms. “Fine, your way then, but if it doesn’t work then we follow my idea.”

“Deal” and as she said this, the doorbell rang “I called the girls to talk.”

Bonnie and Caroline stepped in, and they immediately picked up the sour mood of Lucrezia and Elena.

“I’m assuming this is more bad news.” Bonnie said looking between the sisters.

“Lately it seems to be the only kind of news. Come on.” she gestured and they walked to Lucy’s room. She closed the door in case John returned.

“Well common, fill us in already.” Caroline said, taking a seat at her desk as Bonnie sat on her bay window reading spot.

Elena begins explaining everything without leaving a single detail out about how Elijah had got inside their house fooling Jenna and how they ended up making a deal with him. Lucrezia talked about her new drawings, which included him. Also how he was the one that released Stefan from the tomb and compelled Katherine to stay, all with the help of Dr. Martin and Lucca who removed the spell and were working for him. That John had returned claiming to have a way to protect Elena and that he had dropped the bomb with Jenna.

"You did what?!" Caroline said. "And you are telling us this just now? What were you thinking?" she said standing up. 

“I can believe that Lucca lied to me, I thought he was my friend.” Bonnie’s shoulders dropped and she frowned.

"I'm sorry girls, but yesterday I was with Stefan and then John came back to town and it was all a mess. I’m really sorry about Lucca, Bonnie. I know how excited you were to meet more witches."

Bonnie prefered not to say anything else about him and crossed her arms. Changing the subject she said "I can't believe you are trusting the person that tried to kidnap you Elena." 

"Besides wasn't he dead?" Caroline asked.

"Apparently Originals are not that easy to kill. He seemed perfectly healthy, like if he hadn’t been staked at all.” Lucy commented thinking about how Damon told them that he had “killed” him with a stair fence. This changed everything for them if they could not kill them so easily.

"I know it sounds terrible, but if Klaus is stronger than Elijah then I can’t think of any other way to take him down. That's why I made a deal with Elijah. I think he might be able to do it." 

“I don’t trust him either but he did save Stefan. Although I’m not sure he’s gonna fulfill his part of the deal respecting Klaus.” Lucrezia commented.

“There has to be a spell or something that I can do. Maybe that’s why Elijah has witches. I could find something.”

“I agree with Bonnie, you can’t trust Elijah. Especially if Lucy saw him. That hasn’t failed before.” Caroline added.

“You might not approve it, but until we find another solution I’m gonna stick with this plan for now.” Elena said.

The room fell silent when Caroline and Bonnie understood that there was no way to make Elena change her mind. They look at each other, knowing that they weren't going to give up either. There had to be a better alternative.

Lucy broke the silence with something that she had been pondering for the last few weeks. "I will tell Jenna the truth about everything."

At this the three girls looked at her with shock.

"Absolutely not! We promised to keep her out to protect her." Elena said. Bonnie and Caroline decided to stay quiet.

"Absolutely yes!" Lucrezia stood up, not wanting to back down. "Elijah got invited in because she didn't know who he was. The same thing with Katherine. If she had known the truth from the beginning that could've been prevented. Besides, now Jenna has to work with him for the historical society. She should be prepared. And what if the same thing happens with Klaus? What if she invites him by accident? We are angry at John and our parents from keeping the truth but we're doing the same thing with Aunt Jenna. Especially with the fact that Isobel is our mother. If John showed up I wouldn't be surprised if she does too, and I won't risk Jenna to find out just like this morning." she took a breath after her rant. Elena was with her mouth open in surprise. Bonnie and Caroline waited for Lucy to continue but for them it wasn't necessary. They were already convinced. "At first I also thought it was the right thing to do, but now with this sacrifice thing it's time to tell the truth. We haven't faced something like this before and we don't know what could happen. Just like you were willing to make a deal with Elijah without our approval I will do the same thing with Jenna."

Elena didn't know what to answer, she really wanted to keep Jenna out of everything so that she wouldn't be in the same situation that they were in. But despite her worry, Lucy was right about everything she had said. She scratched her neck thinking, while she paced in the room. 

Caroline got close to her and putting a hand over her shoulder she said with a soft voice "Elena I know that this is not my place to say anything, but I believe she's right. This is dangerous and we can't keep her out and protect her at the same time. Maybe it's time for her to find out."

Bonnie stood up and decided to intervene too. "We know you are worried and why you made this choice at the beginning, but she will understand and adapt just like Jeremy did."

Elena looked at Lucrezia, who was patiently waiting for her to make her mind. It was true that she was going to do it even if she didn't have her support. Still, it would be nice to have her sister next to her once she did.

"We should give Ric a heads up before doing it." She said, and Lucy's face brightened with her reply.

After that, the four of them kept talking about what they could do to deal with Jenna. Soon, Caroline left to get some stuff she had forgotten at her house and Lucrezia left to the square with Bonnie.

\-------

“You brought back John Gilbert?” Damon said. “That was your big 'save Elena' move?”

“Who 's John?” Rose asked as she entered the salon where Damon and Stefan were arguing.

“Elena’s and Lucy's biological father, and an asshole that you can totally kill if you want.” Damon said, but Rose just rolled her eyes at his dramatic comment.

“I went looking for Isobel and got John.” Stefan continued “He said he could help us, and we’re desperate.”

“We’re not that desperate. The guy tried to barbecue me. Another reason why we should kill him” he said, taking a sip from his bourbon and giving another glass to Rose.

“Damon, Bonnie’s witch friend is working for Elijah. So, we have to assume the moonstone was never destroyed. Elena is putting all of her faith into some deal that she made with Elijah to keep everyone safe. I mean. Do you trust Elijah? I don’t trust him. He's an original. He can’t be trusted. It’s not like we could go and kill him because apparently he can’t die.” Any chance they had to fight against Klaus had been obliterated the moment Elijah showed up at the tomb. Stefan thought about how one could kill a vampire that wasn’t affected by a stake?

“I told you, you bloody gits, that the Originals couldn't be killed just like that.” Rose was actually wondering if they had ears, because it felt like she was talking to a rock. “But if what Stefan said is correct, and Elijah truly gave his word to Elena, you can be sure that he will do as he said. Despite everything, he’s a noble person.” she just hoped she had been very specific on her deal terms. Her hands clenched at the memory of Trevor’s head rolling on the floor.

“Not helping Rose” he said, like hell if he was gonna trust that old mummy, and then he turned to Stefan. “Still waiting for the part where John’s the answer.”

“He knew about the sacrifice. Isobel told him. He said he knew of a way to keep Elena safe.”

“And how do we know that?”

“He’s not talking. At least not to me, anyway.” Damon grunted at his little brother.

“Great work, Stefan, topnoch. As if we didn’t have enough problems.”

He left and Stefan was about to chase him before he tried something stupid, when he got a text from Caroline.

_'911. My house. Now.'_  
  


\------

A chilling wind gave a somber tone to the already depressive mood at the memorial on the town’s square. Lucrezia stood hugging her arms and listening to the beautiful melodies that Melissa played on her cello. Jeremy was at her side when John approached them, he looked at her waiting for a reaction but she kept her eyes on the musician.

“Jeremy, Lucy, there you are.” he said hesitantly, his eyes going from Jeremy to his daughter.

“Looks like I’ve slept through the homecoming.”

“You didn’t miss much.” Lucy huffed but said nothing else. “To say that no one is happy to see me would be an understatement.”

“At least we’re clear on that.” Lucrezia said, finally looking at John with stern eyes. He seemed to want to say something but he looked down.

“Listen, things are different now. You can’t repeat what you did last time.” Jeremy spoke not wanting to prolong this conversation any longer.

“I have no intention of doing that.” he said with conviction to Jeremy, but it seemed more directed to Lucrezia.

“Really?” her eye twitched and her voice got louder, but Jeremy gave her a look to not make a scene there. She lowered her tone but kept talking. “Because that’s not what it looked like when you spoke with Jenna this morning.” 

“It’s the truth and she had to know why I returned.” 

“The truth? Are you fucking kidding me? You know nothing about being honest, _father."_ Lucrezia accentuated the last word with all the venom she could gather. “Do us a favor and get lost already.”

She left before she could lose control, going to get something to eat at the Grill. It was like John knew how to say the worst things and land a blow where it hurt the most. 

Jeremy rejected his uncle's offer for lunch and stayed hoping to catch up with Bonnie, he was about to approach her when he saw her, but Dr. Martin came out of nowhere and began talking with her.

“Hello, Bonnie.” he said and she jumped a little. She regained her composure as her face hardened.

“I don’t have anything to say to you. Or your son.”

“You must be feeling very confused about us.”  
“There’s nothing confusing about it. I trusted Luka and he betrayed me." she accused, narrowing her green eyes. "Elena told me you’re both working for Elijah, so don’t lie about it.”

“I won’t, but that doesn’t mean we’re not looking out for you too.” Despite her harsh words Martin stayed calm with his hands behind his back. 

She looked at him in the eyes and he seemed sincere. But it had been all a lie before, this time couldn't be different. “Spare me the witch-loyalty crap.”

“You might not believe this, but Elijah is a man of his word. You can trust he’ll keep his end of the deal with Elena to keep you and your friends protected.”

“You are right, I don’t believe it.”

When the atmosphere got more tense, Jeremy decided to interrupt them before something could happen.

\------

Damon, Elena and Lucrezia had taken a booth at the other side of the Grill, as far from John as they could by Lucy's request.

"I still don't understand why he's still around." Damon said with furrowed brows.

“Stefan thinks he’s telling the truth about wanting to help me.”

“You believe him?” he asked, to both of them. Lucy deadpanned like if he had asked the most stupid question ever and continued reading the new menu Matt had giving them. 

“No. I don’t believe him for a second," Elena did answered "although he might have information that we could use. It could be why Isobel sent him.”

“I don’t trust him either.”

“How are we gonna make him talk?”

"I told you how, you're too stubborn to listen to me." Lucy said looking up and putting the menu down.

"Why am I only hearing about this now?" Damon gestured with his finger between Elena and Lucy.

"Because apparently Elena still has a sense of affection towards our dearest uncle." she said running a hand through her hair, exasperated with her way to complicate this matter more than it was required.

"Just because I want answers doesn’t mean I’m gonna tourture him or whatever you have in mind. Besides, we had a deal, Lucrezia," Elena pointed a finger at her "and you promised me we wouldn't hurt him."

"Oh, well,” Lucy shrugged, “I guess I’ve changed my mind, he's far too insufferable and is getting on my nerves. The fastest we get information, the fastest he's gonna leave."

"Okay, quit it with this stupid chit chat and tell me already. What was your plan?"

"I suggested that we should drain the vervain from his body and let you or Rose compel him."

Damon smiled, finally agreeing about something with a Gilbert and looked at Elena thinking it was a great idea. But she didn't even let him speak and intervened before he could try to weasel out a confirmation from her with his charming baby blue eyes and that strange coherent nonsense he usually spoke to manipulate. "I'm not gonna allow for you two to do whatever you want with John, okay? He's an asshole, that's true, but we're not gonna step down to his level."

Lucy and Damon looked at each other in disbelief and she raised her hands in the air, not willing to fight a pointless war with her twin.

"Fine, then what do you suggest we do? Miss goody two shoes."

"He did say this morning that he was gonna talk, he just needs to know he can trust us."

Lucrezia scoffed "So, now _we_ have to earn his trust? My back still hurts from his knife, it should be the other way around."

"Can't argue with that." he smirked at Elena.

"Listen, I'm being serious, okay? Even if none of us believe him now, he might be telling the truth. At least about the sacrifice. Despite everything he has done I don't think he's willing to put me in risk. Or you Lucrezia. And whether we like or not we're desperate for anything that could help."

Sometimes Lucrezia found herself envying Elena for the strength in her convictions, it was admirable not to be so easily persuaded to break her values even in the face of danger; and she valued life and fairness above all.

Her sister had presented a good case even if Lucy disagreed with it. She hated him, but not even John despite all of his flaws would put their daughters in danger. That of course couldn't be said about their vampire friends. He couldn't care less about them, so they would have to figure out a way to deal with whatever scheme he had for their dismissal. Because of course he had one. 

Still, she signed and nodding said "Okay 'Lena. Let's hear him out."

"You can't be serious, that guy tried to kill us remember? I almost ended up like a vampire kebab. Even if he does know something useful, he won't cooperate with us. I said we go on with Lucy's previous plan and we will have what we need before sunrise." He said gulping down the last of his bourbon and stood up.

Elena grabbed his arm and stopped him before he reached John “We just need answers Damon.” he groaned and turned to look at her.

“Fine, I’m not gonna hurt him, Elena. I’m the good guy now, remember?” 

“What does that mean?” she asked, crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes.

“I’m gonna have a civil conversation with your father.”

“Please don’t do anything stupid.”

“Yeah, but stupid is so much more fun.” he smirked raising an eyebrow.

“Damon, I mean it. All I’m asking is that you try to keep it together. Be the better man.” she pleaded.

\------

The last rays of sunshine were dying, and as night fell Rose decided to leave the Boarding House and head straight to where she could have a variety of food choices. The only place like that in such a small town was the Grill. It had been a couple of days since the last time she had eaten from the vein. Not that she was ungrateful for the Salvatores generous offer of almost unlimited blood bags. 

Nothing could be compared though, to the rush of adrenaline after hunting and fresh warm blood that leaked from the corners of her mouth. Even if she couldn't kill anyone, something she had agreed with everyone in order to be allowed to stay here, still she enjoyed it. Compelling them to forget would have to suffice. Rose decided to endure such ridiculous, vampire-nature denying, terms until Klaus was dealt with. 

Elijah had bestowed his forgiveness towards her, but nothing proved that Klaus would do the same. Katerina had destroyed her life, her eternity, Rose wanted to take it back. Of course there were doubts, no one had succeeded in taking him down, but for once her fear was not stopping her. She guessed that after five hundreds years of cowardice and her only family killed, finally she had found her will to live, not to simply survive. If she died trying at least she would've done more for herself than ever before and Trevor would be waiting for her, probably ready to make fun of her once again.

Rose took a seat at the bar, and when Elena saw her, she remembered. Klaus' face. She left Damon alone to do what he had to do, and strode across the place to where her sister was and standing in front of her she spoke.

"Lucy, I had a great idea yesterday. I almost forgot to tell you." 

"I'm all ears." she said leaning in.

"Not here, let's go to the bar.” Elena didn’t wait for her to stand and strode back to the bar, knowing she was behind her and said “This has to do with Rose."

The girls saw Rose talking with a cute brunette guy, a glass of whiskey in her hand, her eyes flicked to his neck without his notice.

"Hey Rose." 

Rose clenched her jaw and with a heavy sigh she greeted back "Elena, Lucrezia. What is it you want?" 

"Remember what we spoke the other day?" At her question Rose turned frowning to the cute guy and compelled him to leave them alone. Lucrezia witnessed the interaction with her mouth slightly open, confused by her twin.

"And?" 

Elena sat where the guy had been. "Well, you said that if you saw Klaus again you could recognize him."

"So?” Rose said, and drank “It's not like he's here." and with her free hand she gestured to the air.

"No, but I am." Lucy said, finally picking up what Elena intended to do. It was so freakin obvious that she wanted to punch herself for not realising sooner.

She sat at the other side from Rose, grabbed a paper napkin, and asked the bartender for a pencil. There were two male faces that had yet to be identified, but if she had indeed seen Klaus then she was pretty sure which one he was out of those two. 

Her hand moved with ease as it drew the already familiar lines. His light hair, full lips and angry eyes. Rose watched with curiosity turning on her seat to pay attention to the other Gilbert girl.

In minutes the sketch was finished, and she put it down in front of Rose with too much force.

"Is this Klaus?" her hands fiddling with the pencil and she leaned forward studying Rose's reaction.

Rose froze at the picture in front of her, her stomach churned when she saw the man that chased her for so long. She stared at it for a moment, not even picking it up, and then she stared at Lucrezia bewildered.

"How… How do you know him?" she asked and her head whipped to the doppelganger "You said you didn't." she narrowed her eyes. 

"We haven't, actually.” Lucy said “It's a complicated story that I will gladly tell you later, but right now we should find Damon."

Elena scanned the room and saw Damon talking, or better said threatening, John. They were near a small altar of candles and pictures that people had put there for the memorial. She walked up to them and pulled Damon's arm and told him to come where they were, not giving him much of a chance to argue with her.

"Hello Rose dear," he turns to the twins "Now, care to explain why you two interrupted me? I was getting somewhere with your dear father." Elena scoffed at him, it had looked like the complete opposite.

"This." Lucy said, shoving the napkin into Damon's chest. "That is Klaus, and Rose just confirmed it."

Damon examined the drawing and his eyes widened. Never had he been so fucking greatfull for his friend’s weird power.

"Are you 100% sure?" he asked Rose. 

"Yes,” she nodded, surprised that he had not questioned them. He knew. “It's definitely him."

"Good, finally at least someone is being helpful.” he exclaimed and got closer to Lucy “I need you to draw a more detailed one and send a picture to everyone. We have to be ready. I will compel some people to keep an eye in case they see him if he decides to show his creepy ass in town. "

Elena gleamed with hope for once in this horrific couple of weeks. She was about to call Stefan to tell him the news, when his number popped up on her screen before she could dial his number.

\------

“I will go with you.” she crossed her arms.

“No, you won’t.” Damon and John said in unison. Elena was ready to retort, but he raised a hand to shut her up.

“This could be a trap to lure Stefan and me away from you, and snatch you so that they can break the curse instead. You will stay here.” Damon turned to Rose and said “Watch them out for me would you?”

“Great, I’m on nanny duty now.” she crossed her arms and leaned on the wall.

“And you,” he grabbed John’s shoulders, “be useful and ground your daughters.” 

“Damon!” Lucy and Elena exclaimed.

That blonde bitch had dared to take Caroline and was making demands. Stefan and Damon were going to meet with her. 

Lucrezia saw Elena’s phone on her back pocket and the grinds of her mind started to work. They were gonna need backup if they wanted a chance to take Caroline back, but she couldn't be seen, or they would stop her out of pride. Knowing her twin, she waited for her to push back against John. Elena never went down without a proper fight. 

As expected she reached for the door, decided to follow Damon.

“No, no, no. I'm with Damon with this one.” he blocked their way.

“Mm-mm.” she tried again and at this Lucrezia picked up her phone without her noticing, pretending to want to follow Damon too. With her keen eyes, Rose saw this, and Lucy gave her a look that indicated ‘later’.

“No! Stop both of you. You’re going anywhere. Just tell me what‘s going on.”

“I won’t talk to you. You want me to stay? Fine, but I refuse to share oxigen with you.” she said, pulling out from his grasp and letting Elena to deal with him. Rose was close behind her trail. She had to call before Elena noticed her missing phone. 

Lucrezia rushed to the booth they had been at, and Rose sat next to her.

“What do you think you’re doing?” 

Her eyes remained glued at the screen while looking between her sister's contacts. “You don’t really think that Damon and Stefan can fight alone, right? Might not be a full moon, but as a pack they still have the numbers.”

Lucy took her silence as an affirmation, and kept searching. When she found what she was looking for she pressed it. Her heart pounded on her ribcage, as thoughts that Caroline could die clouded her mind. It rang twice before the other line picked up.

“Elena. To what do I owe your call?” Rose tensed when she heard his voice, but didn't stop her.

“It’s me actually.”

“Lucrezia, this is a strange thing indeed, is…”

“Sorry to interrupt with all the formalities but something happened and we need help.” she said while tapping her fingers on the table “You did give us your word Elijah.”

“Yes, I did. So, what is it you need from me?” Rose raised a brow at Elijah’s fast disposition.

“Werewolves have kidnapped Caroline. Stefan and Damon are going to rescue her but Rose stayed with us because they think it’s a trap to take Elena and…”

“She has to protect you while they face an entire pack alone. I see.” he interrupted. There was a pause and Lucrezia locked eyes with Rose. She had grown a soft spot for Damon after all. So, both hoped he would agree “Consider it done Lucrezia.” she sighed in relief. "Where are you? Are you with your sister?" 

"Yes, we're at the Grill." 

"Don't move. I'm going there." he hung up and Lucrezia stared at the phone with wide eyes. She had imagined he would just send someone else, like an evil minion or something, not for him to personally want to protect them. Her surprise made her not notice that John and Elena were there, and her sister saw her with her phone.

"Ready? Let's go home. It will be safer there, and with less innocents." he said eyeing everyone around them. If the werewolves were to attack they had to attract them to a more quiet place.

"We can't." Lucy simply said. “Not until he arrives.” she looked at Elena in the eyes and gave her her phone back. Elena pursed her lips for stealing her phone but understood.

"What?" he whipped his head "What are you talking about?"

“Lucy called Elijah.” she answered for her, instinctively knowing what she did.

"Tell me you are joking Lucrezia." He narrowed his eyes at his daughter.

"Don't look at me like that." she stood and with a calm voice she said "It's not like you could fight against werewolves anyway."

A bell sounded, indicating that another client had arrived. Elijah approached with firm strides, exuding a charm that left no room for doubts of who truly commanded the place. He locked eyes with Lucrezia, and for once she understood the power he possessed after who knew how many centuries of life. His dark eyes have witnessed unspeakable acts of true horror, by his hands or anothers.

With a curt nod he greeted everyone and then directed his attention towards John. “A shame we meet in this circumstances Mr. Gilbert, I am Elijah” he gave his hand and John grabbed it with hesitation. “I advise we leave. I will escort you to your house, and stay until I know it is safe for you.”

“What about Caroline, Stefan and Damon?” Elena asked.

“That has already been arranged. No need to worry for your friends. Now, shall we?” he offered and not even John dared to say otherwise. Who would have thought that an Original was the thing Lucy needed to shut up John?

\------

Lucrezia was seated on her father's sofa chair. Lights turn down, hugging her legs. She paid no attention to the sounds of her home, and her mind was lost in thought. Elijah had assured them that the werewolves were not going to attack them. How he was so confident of that was out of her knowledge. Although, the confidence in his gaze preached the same that his words. So this time, she decided to trust him. He had made a single phone call, checked the house and left soon after. His assurance had been somewhat recomforting, but a sense of dread had decided to hunt her down. A coldness crept up in the back of her neck. 

What she had kept silent was that as Elijah talked with John and Rose, she had a vision again. It was the shaved hair guy. A wolf, she presumed, with everything that was going on. Whatever had happened tonight, it had unleashed a series of consequences, for he was still in the picture and ready to do further damage.

A common way that programmers choose to send secret messages is when a picture is hiding in the code of another one and you have to figure out that code to reveal the real image. There was more, she believed, lurking in the shadows, she could not see it but she could feel it. Just like that picture. A shame that there was no way to hack real life.

Her mind returned to the present when she heard Elena yelp. Lucy rushed to the kitchen only to find John in there with her.

“Now that you are here too. It’s time for us to talk.” he looked at them both and said to Lucrezia. “Yes, you will share oxygen with me. It won't kill you.”

“Then speak, we’re not immortals.”

“I’m sorry about earlier.”

“Enough already, we don’t want you here and we can’t make it anymore clear.” Elena said, filling a glass with orange juice.

“I didn't come here to fight with you.” John took slow steps towards them.

“Yeah, I know. You are here to protect me. Get in line.”

John sighed, hands dropping to the counter island. He rubbed his neck, gathering his thoughts.

“I’m sorry f…”

“You already apologized.” Lucy cut him off, and John shushed her up with his gaze not in the mood to deal with her sass.

“I’m sorry,” he continued, “for not being the father you want or need. I’m anywhere near like John was.” Elena and Lucy looked at each other. “I know that I’ve disappointed you. That I’ve shattered the trust we had.” his hand rubbed his face, Elena had tears in her eyes. “I’ve done terribles things. You have no reason to trust me. I know that. What you should understand girls, is that the night you lost your parents, I lost my brother, my family, my way. I know I'll probably never make things right with you. But I will do everything I can to protect what’s left of this family.” he left after that. Elena had tears in her eyes and Lucrezia hugged her. She returned it, knowing it wasn’t only to comfort her, but to also ease the sadness she denied herself to feel.

Their moment was interrupted when Stefan appeared near their dining table. “Elena.” he said. She ran to him, like if he was air. Lucy gave them space but soon she hugged Stefan too. He enveloped both girls in a tight embrace. He was back and alive.

“I’m glad you are both safe.” he said caressing Elena's cheek.

“What happened?”

“Are you ok? Is everyone safe?”

Both girls spoke at the same time.

“Yes, at first we were outnumbered and they almost killed Caroline but Dr. Martin arrived. He fried their brains I think, I’m not sure. We left before we could check.” the gilbert girls felt a weight dissipate from their shoulders. “I could use your help. Caroline is not alright, even though she denies it. Perhaps you two and Bonnie could help her feel better.”

Elena locked eyes with Lucy and an idea flashed without words, slumber party.

“I will call Bonnie.” Elena said, grabbing her phone.

“I’m gonna start packing some stuff.” Lucy dashed to her room, she thought it was best to give them a few minutes alone before they left.

She grasped the first bag she found in her closet and started filling it with a change of clothes, her sketchbook, and her laptop that had tons of movies they could watch together. Including Caroline’s favorite, The Notebook.

Her phone rang and a name she had added this same night appeared. Lucy hesitated, after a small intake of breath she answered.

"Elijah,” she said, tugging at the hem of her shirt. His call was unexpected. “Not that I mind but how did you get my number?"

"I have my ways Lucrezia, just like you." He teased "I was told your friends are safe already." He said, in a more serious tone.

"Yes, Stefan has just returned. He told us everything" if this was his reason for calling her, then it was unnecessary. Of course he knew how things went down, he didn’t need a confirmation from her. So, why would he call to state the obvious? But it would be very rude to say that after everything he did.

Putting aside her doubts and gathering courage she spoke what she was feeling, while rubbing her neck. "Thank you, really. You saved them." 

"It was my duty, as I promised to your sister."

"I know” she said a bit too fast. Leaning on her window frame and looking outside she tried to calm herself and said “Whether it was due to an obligation or not, you helped us tonight and I'm truly thankful for that Elijah. I don’t want to think what would’ve happened if you didn’t." Technically, it had been Dr. Martin who saved them, but he would have never done it if Elijah had not asked. Lucrezia was starting to believe he truly was a man of his word. A rare trait in the twenty-first century, but after all he indeed was someone from a different time.

There was a pause and for a second she thought he had ended the call.

"I appreciate your kind words Lucrezia” his voice sounded less stoic and more genuine, almost softer. “It's my pleasure to help you." he said, and there was a strange enfasis on the way he said the word _you._ Like if he were referring only about her and not also her friends. She furrowed her brows in confusion, but shaked her head when she thought she was probably misinterpreting him.

Elena shouted her name from downstairs.

"I, um… I gotta go now. I want to check on Caroline."

"Of course. Good night, and please stay safe Lucrezia. Call me again, if anything happens." her name once again rolled off his tongue in that way only he did. Even if he was a potential enemy and a deadly killing machine product of old magic, she had to admit that it was incredibly pleasant to hear him say it.

"Good night Elijah." She hung up and sat down on a chair. 

Every interaction with him made her feel confused. He had caused them so many problems before, threatened them and still he had this strange gentleness towards her. It couldn't be something so silly like attraction, not that she doubted her appearance but she wasn't that pretty to tempt an Original vampire who had seen his fair share of beauty across time. There was something else behind his actitud that made her doubt about what he wanted. It could all be a pretense to gain an advantage she hadn't yet predicted. Or maybe not, and she was overthinking too much into his actions and being paranoid. Elijah Mikaelson was a puzzle that perplexed her.

Lucy breathed in and out a couple of times to gather her thoughts, this was not the time to ponder about such things. Grabbing her bag, she went downstairs. Her best friend had been tortured, tonight it was all about making her feel safe and better. On the ride Stefan gave them, she allowed her mind to run free on thoughts about what she could do to make them suffer for daring to put a hand on her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I gotta be honest here. Just like Noah, I'm a slut for comments 🤣🤣 so if you liked it please let me know. I can't express enough how amazing is to read even a single comment, and even if it si extremely simple it encourages to keep writing because I want to keep putting a smile on you.  
> Thank you so much for reading this story, I hope is enjoyable.
> 
> (Edit 30/11/2020: I'm outlining chapter four. Once that is done I'm gonna start writing it)  
> (Edit 3/12/2020: Okay dear people, I've started chapter four today. 1180 words so far.)  
> (Edit 6/12/2020: I've written a lot (i just need to write three more scenes, edit everything and it's done) BUT, I'm kinda burned out at the moment. So, I will rest for a couple of days and then I will publish this chapter before the year ends. If it is any consolation, chapter four will be at least 7500 words long too.)


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